KABUL — A suicide bomber hit a rally of Shiites protesting attacks on their community in the Afghan capital on Monday, killing at least six people, witnesses and officials said.
Hundreds of members of the Shiite religious minority have been protesting since Sunday evening outside the presidential palace over the government’s inability to stop a string of attacks on predominantly Shiite regions in the center of the country dominated by the ethnic Hazaras, who are mostly from the same sect.
As the protest was in full swing, security officials in Kabul announced the dispatch of more troops and use of air force against the insurgents in the regions under question.
No group has taken responsibility for the attack, although, affiliates of the Islamic State have claimed many of the strikes against Shiites, including one that killed scores of anti-government protesters in summer of 2016.
The hard line Sunni insurgent movement considers the Shiite branch of Islam to be a heresy and often targets civilians from that group. Estimates vary widely of the number of Shiites in the country but they are believed to make up roughly 10 percent of the population.
Police said the protest was likely the target of the assailant and according to residents, ordered the closure of all avenues leading to the presidential palace in the heart of the city.
“The bomber was on foot and a blast took place as he was walking toward the protesters,” Ahmad Tamim, an eye witness said.
The protest had already disrupted normal life in Kabul, leading to the closure of some government institutions and businesses.
TV footage showed casualties strewn about in one part of a road close the palace as ambulances rushed to the site to evacuate the victims.
The attack in Kabul comes as the Afghan government’s main opponent, the formidable Taliban insurgency, has stepped up attacks against security forces around the country.
Reports from Uruzgan and neighboring Ghazni provinces describe a regular onslaught of Taliban attacks over the past two weeks that have claimed the lives of dozens of members of government troops, including elite forces.
A recent report by a U.S. watchdog described casualties among government forces as being at the highest levels they have ever attained, while the government controls just a little over half the country and is steadily losing ground.
Several of the areas recently seized by the Taliban, had been among the most secure in the country.
Read more:
Utah mayor and father of seven killed in Afghanistan
Report: Taliban maintaining foothold in Afghanistan amid increasing violence
Kabul braces for attacks during Shiite holiday as violence convulses Afghanistan
Today’s coverage from Post correspondents around the world
Like Washington Post World on Facebook and stay updated on foreign news
Credit:Washington Post
via USAHint.com
No comments:
Post a Comment